The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) has identified a juvenile Jane Doe who was killed over 40 years ago as Linda Sue Karnes. The skeletal remains were found in the early 1980s at a landfill in Ashland City. After DNA testing and genealogical research, Karnes was positively identified. The TBI is now seeking information to solve her murder. Erin McCullough reported
A juvenile girl who was previously unidentified has now been identified as Linda Sue Karnes, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI). The TBI is currently searching for the person responsible for her death. The skeletal remains of Karnes were discovered at a former landfill in Ashland City, Tennessee in the early 1980s. UT Anthropology Department determined that she was a young white female, believed to be between 14 and 17 years old at the time of her death. Despite extensive efforts, investigators were unable to determine her identity and she was classified as a Jane Doe. A DNA profile was developed from a sample of her remains and entered into various databases in hopes of identifying her.
Last year, as part of the TBI’s Unidentified Human Remains DNA Initiative, a sample of Karnes’ remains was submitted for further forensic genetic genealogical testing. This testing provided information about possible relatives, which led to the positive identification of Karnes. Her family, who had not heard from her in over 40 years, submitted their DNA for comparison.
Karnes was originally from Cleveland but grew up in Cunningham, Tennessee. Prior to her death, she had spent time in Montgomery County Girls Home in Clarksville. TBI special agents are now seeking information from the public that may help solve the murder of Linda Sue Karnes. If anyone has information about individuals she may have been with before her death, they are urged to call 1-800-TBI-FIND..
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